


Red-eyed Knight

by tenguoni



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Humanstuck, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-20
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2020-01-20 18:39:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18530842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tenguoni/pseuds/tenguoni
Summary: Karkat is a humble rancher who lives on the edge of a kingdom town. One day, during his daily routine, he meets a Knight.





	1. First Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> OKAY SO its been a long while since I've posted anything but I wanted to get back into the groove. I'm not using a beta reader or anything so I hope it's alright and legible! Here's a little teaser chapter to get the ball rolling.

As Karkat looks over his little plot of land, watching the chickens peck and dog keeping them in line, he holds a cup of hot water that he’s been drinking. It’s part of his morning ritual: feed the animals, warm up with a hot drink, sit out and watch them before making breakfast. Today, he thinks it’ll be eggs and toast, which he happens to need more of. Karkat already plans on taking a run into town later today to fetch more bread, which he’s stuck thinking about as he watches the dog circle a nervous hen.

He goes about getting ready to leave his little home, throwing on clothes for the day with a coat, and putting his fingers through his messy hair, before leaving to go down the hill into town.

Some days it’s quite clear in town, while other days, it can be as busy and bustling as a city. He isn’t sure what causes the fluctuating traffic, but he does know it bothers him to the ends of the earth to be stuck walking behind a pregnant woman holding her two kids as he’s just trying to get bread for the next few days.

The town market is probably the busiest place around, next to the pubs district, which is always full of people at all hours. In the mornings, it’s full of farmers and ranchers and the occasional butler from the kingdom, and at night it’s full of younger people and drunks and travellers coming through for wares. If one were to travel up through the market, they’d eventually run into homes, and past the homes is the castle walls and the castle of the kingdom itself.

That’s one place Karkat has never been, and probably never will go. He’s seen what the front doors look like, and the royalty’s caravans, but he couldn’t even imagine how regal it must be on the inside. He’s reluctant to say it, but he’s interested to know what it’s like on the inside. It’s amazing on the outside, tall and skillfully crafted, all mismatched coloured bricks and flags hung on the outside, guards in full knight gear walking the perimeter of the walls at all hours.

“Karkat, dearest, are you zoning out?” His friend, Kanaya, asks.

He snaps his gaze to her, surprised. Right. He was standing right in front of her as he became captivated by the castle, “No. Yeah. I don’t know. Hi.” He sighs lightly, glancing in her direction.

“You sure are warm this morning,” She comments slyly, turning back to her weaving board as Karkat pretends he doesn't hear her.

“Looking for something?” She asks, after a moment.

“Food vendors. I'm running low.” He responds bluntly. She was right to (sarcastically) point out his warmth today, he's not exactly feeling social. Some would ask, when is Karkat Vantas ever feeling social? To that, he can only simply reply: go fuck yourself.

“Ah yes, they're over there today.” Kanaya points over in the right direction, “Meat is the opposite way.”

“Thanks. See you around.” Karkat half waves at her, starting to leave in the direction she pointed out, before he's interrupted by her.

“Karkat, is that a tear I see? Come here, I cannot have you walking around with that.” She ushers him over, standing up from her stool so he knows she's serious, and takes him by the elbow so he'll sit down in her little kiosk.

“Really, you're better than this. I keep telling you, if you have a tear, come to me immediately. You know I'm willing to do this for you for free.” She sighs like she's exhausted, already taking out a bone needle and thread.

“For fuck's sake, can you be any more of a mother hen?” Karkat snarks.

Before she can answer, they're both interrupted by someone clearing their throat loudly. “If you two can quit your flirting for a moment, I would like to speak to the seamstress.”

Kanaya looks up, then looks at Karkat, bewildered. Flirting? Yeah fucking right. “My brother and I were not flirting, I assure you.”

Karkat resists the urge to laugh out loud, knowing they are not, in fact, siblings. But it's a fair excuse to defend themselves with.

“What can I help you with, good… Knight?” She looks the man up and down, as does Karkat.

He's strange looking. Scars on his face, a dark piece of glass covering half his face, and the most regal, most bulky, set of armor Karkat thinks he's ever seen. From what he can tell though, he's handsome. And tall.

Karkat looks away and pretends to busy himself with sorting pieces of thread.

“I come from the castle. We've heard good things about your wares, the King wants to request you make and design drapes and dresses for them.” The man tells her, loud enough for Karkat to hear.

It makes sense he's from the castle… His armor is spectacular. No ordinary run of the mill knight looks this good. Not that he's noticed, really.

“Is he your assistant?” The man asks, gesturing to Karkat.

“Uh, he's just..” Kanaya looks back at him, looking for a sign of what to say.

“She's just fixing my sleeve.” Karkat interrupts.

As much as he's fantasized getting into that castle, he knows he'd be jeopardizing her business by pretending to be part of it. No need to pretend he's doing anything else.

“That's too bad.” The knights says.

Kanaya gives Karkat a look as if to say, “Did you hear that?”

He flusters and hides his face, looking down at the thread in his lap and continuing to unravel it.

“Well sir, you can tell your King I'd be incredibly honored to do that task for him and his company. As long as he's made up his mind that he wants me.” Kanaya bows her head politely, curtsying as well to show her gratitude.

“He's sure. No doubt. We'll be expecting your company, a carriage will arrive here for you tonight. Bring your tools.” He says.

Wow… She's so lucky. She's getting to get into the kingdom, and going to possibly meet the King. He has no doubt it'll be high pressure, but it'll be worth it now that she has the King's endorsement. Not many people get that, but Karkat knows she's capable and amazing at what she does.

“What's your name?” Karkat hears, but doesn't look up, knowing it's for Kanaya. But when she doesn't respond, he worries she's lost it, and finds that they're both looking at Karkat.

“Me? Why?” Karkat asks.

“Mine is Dave.” He says, leaned over Kanaya's table.

“Go on.” Kanaya urges.

“It's-- it's Karkat. Vantas.” He stutters out, nervous what he'll do with that information.

“We’ll meet again. Same goes to you, seamstress.” Dave says, before walking into the crowd and disappearing, somehow with ease despite his armor and height.

Kanaya stares at Karkat with wide eyes, but an otherwise very hard to read expression.

“What?” He asks, gawking slightly.

“Is it just me, or was that knight taking an unabashed liking to you?” Kanaya inquires, letting on that she’s simply in disbelief.

“Holy fuck- no!” Karkat protests without hesitation, “He thought I was your helper or something, don’t be crude.”

“He didn’t ask for MY name,” She points out. “I think he liked you!”

“Kanaya, jesus fucking christ, men don’t just show they like another man, especially not a fucking knight.” Karkat fights with her further on the subject, grumbling as he throws all the messy loops of thread into the basket by his side.

“I think that’s all the more reason to show he may like you! Who is going to put a King’s official warrior down? Absolutely nobody, that is who.” She protests against his, evidently very firmly under the belief this man had some sort of attraction to Karkat.

Which is ridiculous, because he’s poor, he’s always covered in a thin layer of dirt, he has a bad attitude, and he’s nothing to look at, either. Even if Kanaya insists that’s not the truth, he’s not a flipping idiot who can’t see himself.

Even if, somehow, this man was oblivious to all these things upon a simple meeting, it doesn’t mean he would actually be… Well. Gay. The likelihood of that alone, is incredibly low.

So, even if the man did make him feel a little flustered, and there may be the smallest part of him that would hope a guy would take interest in him, he pushes the thought away. It’ll never happen, just like it’ll never happen that he’ll get to see the inside of the beautiful kingdom.


	2. Hey, Vantas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little time in Karkat's daily life.

As soon as Kanaya has fixed up his sleeve and lets him leave, Karkat heads to the far side of the market to find some food to take home. It’s a little bit of a pain in the ass for him, as everything smells so good and looks good, and he finds it so easy to spend everything he has on just food. Which wouldn’t necessarily be the worst thing in the world, if he didn’t have chickens and a dog to look after, and ludicrous taxes to take into account.

 

He should look around to see if that dog’s damn owner is around, too. He’s only taking care of it because she can’t, and it happens to be good around chickens. But it’s still not his dog, and she hasn’t visited the thing in over a week.

 

After trading and buying some bread and apples, Karkat takes a brief walk through the rest of the market, primarily looking for Bec’s owner. He knows her well enough to know there’s a high chance that she’s at one of three places: weapons shop, instrument kiosk, or plants and seeds shop. If she’s not at any of those places in the middle of the day, there’s no telling where the wild child could be.

 

Once he’s done looking through the majority of the market and deciding nothing has caught his eye, Karkat leaves the way he came and starts to head home. He figures the dog’s owner will just come when she decides to, on her own time. Which is ultimately inconvenient for Karkat, but he sort of resigned to the fact that that’s just how it’ll be. No one can control that girl.

 

The walk back up the small hill to his home is pleasant today, the air smells of fresh soil and rain, and the wind is picking up just slightly, cooling him off after a long morning of walking. He’s not one to enjoy the “little things” very often, but sometimes the little things take him off guard.

 

When he reaches his home, he sees all his chickens are safe and walking about, while the dog is laying down in some half-dried mud.

 

Great, he thinks. Now he has to wash the dog that isn’t his.

 

He ignores that for now and gets inside his home, pushing open the door to find the room temperature is different. Somehow, it’s colder, but not overly unpleasant, just enough to be noticable.

 

As Karkat puts his new bread loaves on the shelf where they belong, he contemplates starting a fire, letting his mind wander into the spiral of chores and errands he should or shouldn’t do.

 

After everything is put away, and a little bit of time is spent cleaning, he looks outside to see the dog is now rolling in the mud patch. The once-white fur is looking like a stingy shade of brown, darker in some places and lighter where the mud is more dry.

 

He sighs in exasperation, wondering if it’ll be worth it to even wash the dog, when he could just come back and immediately roll around in more dirt.

 

Soon enough, he finds himself by the river washing this damn dog anyway.

 

“Hey! Bec, sit!” He grunts, struggling to calm the dog down. It would seem that he’s just so happy to be in the water, the dog won’t stop making splashes, effectively and gradually soaking Karkat to the point his hair is sticking to his face.

 

“Bec, you fucker, I will throw you to the wolves--”

 

“Well! I trust you with my dog, and you suggest letting it be taken by wolves! Good to know I can trust you,” Someone says behind him, making him jump up to his feet in defense.

 

He stumbles and nearly trips in the shallow river water, but catches his balance to see there’s one Jade Harley standing there, looking tall and proud. He has no idea why though; she looks dirtier than her dog did, complete with twigs in her hair and rips in her skirt.

 

“The fuck did you come from?” Karkat says, holding Bec back from jumping on Jade.

 

“The woods, silly!” She exclaims, stepping forward into the water, getting her shoes and clothes wet, and ruffling up her dog’s dirty, sopping, fur. “Who’s a good boy, have you been a good boy for uncle Karkat?”

 

Bec barks, and Karkat sighs.

 

“Where have you been? I’ve been looking after this beast while you’re off galavanting with squirrels, and you still owe me for feeding this thing every day.” Karkat crosses his arms, looking at her as she baby-talks Bec.

 

“I just tooold you, the woods. I’ll get you back once I trade in some furs, don’t get your jimmies twisted.” She straightens up her posture to speak directly to Karkat now, and he can see the amount of dirt caked on her face. She’s got very clear marks of mud that she definitely put on her cheeks herself. Weird girl.

 

“Shut your trap Harley, I’m untwisted as is.” He scowls, crossing his arms. “Are you gonna take the dog back or what?”

 

“Not today, sorry. I have too much to do! He’s better in your hands right now. Isn’t that right, boy? Huh? Is Uncle Karkat treating you right?” She continues to baby-talk the dog, letting him lick all over her face. His own face twists and contorts into disgust, unable to tear his eyes away from the sight.

 

“What’d you do today?” She asks Karkat, sitting on a rock to splash her own face clear of dirt and dog saliva.

 

“I met a knight,” Karkat says, without thinking. “I mean, there was a knight in town. Two I think, they wanted Kanaya to come to the kingdom.” He quickly adjusts to explain what happened, embarrassed his mind is still somewhat on the handsome stranger.

 

“Oh that’s great! Good for her! I still have that nice white skirt she made me, I’m too scared to wear it though since I get everything dirty, hehe.” Jade tells him, scrubbing her arms now. He understands what she means when she says she gets everything dirty. “She’s amazing though, she deserves it!”

 

“Yeah..” Karkat trails off, looking down at Bec, who’s now jumping around in the water and doing little circles.

 

“Can I come over for a bit? I don’t want to go home and see my grandfather just yet.” Jade asks, pushing her hair back as it falls in her face.

 

“I guess. I don’t have any tea though.”

 

“That’s fine! I just wanted to see you for a bit,” She smiles, exposing that tooth gap of hers.

 

They get Bec from out of the river after he’s all clean, and Jade walks with Karkat back to his home, carrying her sack of fresh meats and furs on her back as they stroll. It’s relatively quiet, save for Jade commenting on the weather and calling Bec when he starts to wander off.

 

She only stays with Karkat for about forty minutes. Their chats are short-winded and mostly friendly, although the two tend to bicker about little things when left to their own devices. Soon after Jade announces she should trade in some of her furs, she leaves, and Karkat is left alone with her dog and his chickens.

 

The rest of his day passes by fast. He goes outside for a while to check on his animals and check if any hens laid eggs, checks they're all healthy, feeds them for the night, and goes inside to turn in.

 

As he lays in bed and thinks about his day, his mind drifts to the castle and that knight again. What is it about him that's so interesting? Did Kanaya really get in his head that easily? He knows her for being intuitive and smart, but she really made a bold claim about a perfect stranger… Still, it's stuck in his mind.

 

His name was Dave, Karkat recalls. The dark glass he wears over his eyes is probably what's so intriguing; he's never seen anyone wearing anything like that. What's it for? Karkat wonders if that part of his face would make him appear even more handsome. He had scars on his face too, Karkat recalls, wondering what he got them from, and if he has a lot more.

 

God, he sighs in frustration, as it occurs to him how much he'd be teased if only Kanaya knew that he's  _ still _ thinking about the mysterious man they met earlier today. He was so proper, and regal, carries himself with pride.

 

Who wouldn't be intrigued by a person like that?

 

Karkat turns over in his bed to face the wall, clenching his eyes shut and attempting not to think of handsome strangers anymore, no matter how haunting they are.

 

The following morning, Karkat goes about his routine. Feed the animals, make a hot drink, sit out and watch them, and make breakfast. Today it'll be apples and toast and eggs, he decides.

 

There isn't as much for him to do today, except maybe get chicken feed, which he could also do tomorrow. Thus, he stays at home for the day. It's unproductive all in all, as is the rest of his week. He sees Jade once again, visits Kanaya twice, and sees his neighbor Aradia once.

 

Aradia is okay. She's very mopey and a little hard to talk to, but a good neighbor. She raises sheep, she has quite a few that live on her property, along with her own sheepdog, and a cat he thinks is feral, but she seems to take care of.

 

Every once in a while they'll trade goods, too. Karkat will give her eggs, and she'll give him wool, which he gives to Kanaya to make into blankets or clothes. Occasionally he'll just gift it to her to keep, too.

 

It's a good arrangement, and he likes Aradia for the most part, she doesn't bother him, she doesn't intrude, and she stays on her side of the property. Plus the sheep don't bother his chickens. He's glad, too, her home was almost bought by this rich rancher man who owns cows and bulls, and he seemed super weird. The man and his animals drove his chickens crazy when he brought a cow up the hill, so he's very grateful Aradia stayed and wasn't bought out.

 

At the end of the week, the day after visiting Aradia, Karkat takes a hike up to the woods with Bec, and goes to the river to wash his clothes and himself. Not everyone can afford the luxury of having maids filling your bath, so Karkat goes to the river for these things. It's not the most convenient; it's open and the water is always cold, but he'd rather not live caked in dirt, so it work well enough.

 

Bec likes the water too, and he needs the protection, so he lets the young dog come along and splash around.

 

It's a good thing, too, because as Karkat is washing up, Bec seems to notice something. At first, Karkat doesn't notice, but then there's a distant  _ cling! clang! _ and he stands up. Is there someone fighting? Or maybe bandits? Quickly, he starts to gather his things in a basket, and Bec begins to growl.

 

Karkat looks over, seeing a flash of red in between the trees. Red and Magenta.

 

_ Clang! _

 

“Stop, stop, I hear something,” says a voice.

 

Karkat stills. The figures move into view, and he holds Bec to his leg, tense.

 

Shit. It's two knights.

 

Karkat pulls his shirt on, turning to get the rest of his things and run off back home, before he hears, “Hey, Vantas.”

**Author's Note:**

> will they meet again?!
> 
> hehe you can find me on twitter @_tenguoni if you wanna talk to me :)


End file.
